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Studies using Helicobacter-infected mice show that bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can repopulate the gastric epithelium and promote gastric cancer progression. Within the tumor microenvironment of the stomach, pro-inflammatory cytokine interferon-gamma (IFN?) and Sonic hedgehog (Shh) are elevated. IFN? is implicated in tumor proliferation via activation of the Shh signaling pathway in various tissues but whether a similar mechanism exists in the stomach is unknown. We tested the hypothesis that IFN? drives MSC proliferation and recruitment, a response mediated by Shh signaling. The current study uses transplantation of an in vitro transformed mesenchymal stem cell line (stMSC(vect)), that over-expresses hedgehog signaling, in comparison to non-transformed wild-type MSCs (wtMSCs), wtMSCs transfected to over-express Shh (wtMSC(Shh)), and stMSCs transduced with lentiviral constructs containing shRNA targeting the Shh gene (stMSC(ShhKO)). The effect of IFN? on MSC proliferation was assessed by cell cycle analysis in vitro using cells treated with recombinant IFN? (rmIFN?) alone, or in combination with anti-Shh 5E1 antibody, and in vivo using mice transplanted with MSCs treated with PBS or rmIFN?. In vitro, IFN? significantly increased MSC proliferation, a response mediated by Shh that was blocked by 5E1 antibody. The MSC population collected from bone marrow of PBS- or IFN?-treated mice showed that IFN? significantly increased the percentage of all MSC cell lines in S phase, with the exception of the stMSCs(ShhKO) cells. While the MSC cell lines with intact Shh expression were recruited to the gastric mucosa in response to IFN?, stMSCs(ShhKO) were not. Hedgehog signaling is required for MSC proliferation and recruitment to the stomach in response to IFN?.

Graft arteriosclerois (GA), also called allograft vasculopathy, is a pathologic lesion that develops over months to years in transplanted organs characterized by diffuse, circumferential stenosis of the entire graft vascular tree. The most critical component of GA pathogenesis is the proliferation of smooth muscle-like cells within the intima. When a human coronary artery segment is interposed into the infra-renal aortae of immunodeficient mice, the intimas could be expand in response to adoptively transferred human T cells allogeneic to the artery donor or exogenous human IFN-γ in the absence of human T cells. Interposition of a mouse aorta from one strain into another mouse strain recipient is limited as a model for chronic rejection in humans because the acute cell-mediated rejection response in this mouse model completely eliminates all donor-derived vascular cells from the graft within two-three weeks. We have recently developed two new mouse models to circumvent these problems. The first model involves interposition of a vessel segment from a male mouse into a female recipient of the same inbred strain (C57BL/6J). Graft rejection in this case is directed only against minor histocompatibility antigens encoded by the Y chromosome (present in the male but not the female) and the rejection response that ensues is sufficiently indolent to preserve donor-derived smooth muscle cells for several weeks. The second model involves interposing an artery segment from a wild type C57BL/6J mouse donor into a host mouse of the same strain and gender that lacks the receptor for IFN-γ followed by administration of mouse IFN-γ (delivered via infection of the mouse liver with an adenoviral vector. There is no rejection in this case as both donor and recipient mice are of the same strain and gender but donor smooth muscle cells proliferate in response to the cytokine while host-derived cells, lacking receptor for this cytokine, are unresponsive. By backcrossing additional genetic changes into the vessel donor, both models can be used to assess the effect of specific genes on GA progression. Here, we describe detailed protocols for our mouse GA models.

Oligodendrocytes are the myelinating cells of the central nervous system. For regenerative cell therapy in demyelinating diseases, there is significant interest in deriving a pure population of lineage-committed oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) for transplantation. OPCs are characterized by the activity of the transcription factor Olig2 and surface expression of a proteoglycan NG2. Using the GFP-Olig2 (G-Olig2) mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) reporter line, we optimized conditions for the differentiation of mESCs into GFP+Olig2+NG2+ OPCs. In our protocol, we first describe the generation of embryoid bodies (EBs) from mESCs. Second, we describe treatment of mESC-derived EBs with small molecules: (1) retinoic acid (RA) and (2) a sonic hedgehog (Shh) agonist purmorphamine (Pur) under defined culture conditions to direct EB differentiation into the oligodendroglial lineage. By this approach, OPCs can be obtained with high efficiency (>80%) in a time period of 30 days. Cells derived from mESCs in this protocol are phenotypically similar to OPCs derived from primary tissue culture. The mESC-derived OPCs do not show the spiking property described for a subpopulation of brain OPCs in situ. To study this electrophysiological property, we describe the generation of spiking mESC-derived OPCs by ectopically expressing NaV1.2 subunit. The spiking and nonspiking cells obtained from this protocol will help advance functional studies on the two subpopulations of OPCs.

Ex vivo Live Imaging of Single Cell Divisions in Mouse Neuroepithelium

Authors: Karolina Piotrowska-Nitsche, Tamara Caspary.

Institutions: Emory University School of Medicine, IGAB Polish Academy of Sciences.

We developed a system that integrates live imaging of fluorescent markers and culturing slices of embryonic mouse neuroepithelium. We took advantage of existing mouse lines for genetic cell lineage tracing: a tamoxifen-inducible Cre line and a Cre reporter line expressing dsRed upon Cre-mediated recombination. By using a relatively low level of tamoxifen, we were able to induce recombination in a small number of cells, permitting us to follow individual cell divisions. Additionally, we observed the transcriptional response to Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) signaling using an Olig2-eGFP transgenic line 1-3 and we monitored formation of cilia by infecting the cultured slice with virus expressing the cilia marker, Sstr3-GFP 4. In order to image the neuroepithelium, we harvested embryos at E8.5, isolated the neural tube, mounted the neural slice in proper culturing conditions into the imaging chamber and performed time-lapse confocal imaging. Our ex vivo live imaging method enables us to trace single cell divisions to assess the relative timing of primary cilia formation and Shh response in a physiologically relevant manner. This method can be easily adapted using distinct fluorescent markers and provides the field the tools with which to monitor cell behavior in situ and in real time.

The article describes a readily easy adaptive in vitro model to investigate macrophage polarization. In the presence of GM-CSF/M-CSF, hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells from the bone marrow are directed into monocytic differentiation, followed by M1 or M2 stimulation. The activation status can be tracked by changes in cell surface antigens, gene expression and cell signaling pathways.

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular parasite that can invade any nucleated cell of warm-blooded animals. During infection, T. gondii disseminates as a fast replicating form called the tachyzoite. Tachyzoites convert into a slow-growing encysted form called the bradyzoite by a signaling process that is not well characterized. Within animals, bradyzoite cysts are found in the central nervous system and muscle tissue and represent the chronic stage of infection. Conversion to bradyzoites can be simulated in tissue culture by CO2 starvation, using medium with high a pH, or the addition of interferon gamma (IFNγ). Bradyzoites are characterized by the presence of a cyst wall, to which the lectin Dolichos biflorus agglutinin (DBA) binds. Fluorescently labeled DBA is used to visualize the cyst wall in parasites grown in human foreskin fibroblasts (HFFs) that have been exposed to low CO2 and high pH medium. Similarly, parasites residing in murine bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMMs) display a cyst wall detectable by DBA after the BMMs are activated with IFNγ and lipopolysaccharide (LPS). This protocol will demonstrate how to induce conversion of T. gondii to bradyzoites using a high pH growth medium with low CO2 and activation of BMMs. Host cells will be cultured on coverslips, infected with tachyzoites and either activated with addition of IFNγ and LPS (BMMs) or exposed to a high pH growth medium (HFFs) for three days. Upon completion of infections, host cells will be fixed, permeabilized, and blocked. Cyst walls will be visualized using rhodamine DBA with fluorescence microscopy.

Mouse Fetal Whole Intestine Culture System for Ex Vivo Manipulation of Signaling Pathways and Three-dimensional Live Imaging of Villus Development

Authors: Katherine D. Walton, Åsa Kolterud.

Institutions: University of Michigan, Karolinska Instituet Novum.

Most morphogenetic processes in the fetal intestine have been inferred from thin sections of fixed tissues, providing snapshots of changes over developmental stages. Three-dimensional information from thin serial sections can be challenging to interpret because of the difficulty of reconstructing serial sections perfectly and maintaining proper orientation of the tissue over serial sections. Recent findings by Grosse et al., 2011 highlight the importance of three- dimensional information in understanding morphogenesis of the developing villi of the intestine1. Three-dimensional reconstruction of singly labeled intestinal cells demonstrated that the majority of the intestinal epithelial cells contact both the apical and basal surfaces. Furthermore, three-dimensional reconstruction of the actin cytoskeleton at the apical surface of the epithelium demonstrated that the intestinal lumen is continuous and that secondary lumens are an artifact of sectioning. Those two points, along with the demonstration of interkinetic nuclear migration in the intestinal epithelium, defined the developing intestinal epithelium as a pseudostratified epithelium and not stratified as previously thought1. The ability to observe the epithelium three-dimensionally was seminal to demonstrating this point and redefining epithelial morphogenesis in the fetal intestine. With the evolution of multi-photon imaging technology and three-dimensional reconstruction software, the ability to visualize intact, developing organs is rapidly improving. Two-photon excitation allows less damaging penetration deeper into tissues with high resolution. Two-photon imaging and 3D reconstruction of the whole fetal mouse intestines in Walton et al., 2012 helped to define the pattern of villus outgrowth2. Here we describe a whole organ culture system that allows ex vivo development of villi and extensions of that culture system to allow the intestines to be three-dimensionally imaged during their development.

Institutions: Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research, University of Copenhagen.

The pancreas is an essential organ that regulates glucose homeostasis and secretes digestive enzymes. Research on pancreas embryogenesis has led to the development of protocols to produce pancreatic cells from stem cells 1. The whole embryonic organ can be cultured at multiple stages of development 2-4. These culture methods have been useful to test drugs and to image developmental processes. However the expansion of the organ is very limited and morphogenesis is not faithfully recapitulated since the organ flattens.
We propose three-dimensional (3D) culture conditions that enable the efficient expansion of dissociated mouse embryonic pancreatic progenitors. By manipulating the composition of the culture medium it is possible to generate either hollow spheres, mainly composed of pancreatic progenitors expanding in their initial state, or, complex organoids which progress to more mature expanding progenitors and differentiate into endocrine, acinar and ductal cells and which spontaneously self-organize to resemble the embryonic pancreas.
We show here that the in vitro process recapitulates many aspects of natural pancreas development. This culture system is suitable to investigate how cells cooperate to form an organ by reducing its initial complexity to few progenitors. It is a model that reproduces the 3D architecture of the pancreas and that is therefore useful to study morphogenesis, including polarization of epithelial structures and branching. It is also appropriate to assess the response to mechanical cues of the niche such as stiffness and the effects on cell´s tensegrity.

Use of LysoTracker to Detect Programmed Cell Death in Embryos and Differentiating Embryonic Stem Cells

Authors: Jennifer L. Fogel, Thu Zan Tun Thein, Francesca V. Mariani.

Institutions: University of Southern California.

Programmed cell death (PCD) occurs in adults to maintain normal tissue homeostasis and during embryological development to shape tissues and organs1,2,6,7. During development, toxic chemicals or genetic alterations can cause an increase in PCD or change PCD patterns resulting in developmental abnormalities and birth defects3-5. To understand the etiology of these defects, the study of embryos can be complemented with in vitro assays that use differentiating embryonic stem (ES) cells.
Apoptosis is a well-studied form of PCD that involves both intrinsic and extrinsic signaling to activate the caspase enzyme cascade. Characteristic cell changes include membrane blebbing, nuclear shrinking, and DNA fragmentation. Other forms of PCD do not involve caspase activation and may be the end-result of prolonged autophagy. Regardless of the PCD pathway, dying cells need to be removed. In adults, the immune cells perform this function, while in embryos, where the immune system has not yet developed, removal occurs by an alternative mechanism. This mechanism involves neighboring cells (called "non-professional phagocytes") taking on a phagocytic role-they recognize the 'eat me' signal on the surface of the dying cell and engulf it8-10. After engulfment, the debris is brought to the lysosome for degradation. Thus regardless of PCD mechanism, an increase in lysosomal activity can be correlated with increased cell death.
To study PCD, a simple assay to visualize lysosomes in thick tissues and multilayer differentiating cultures can be useful. LysoTracker dye is a highly soluble small molecule that is retained in acidic subcellular compartments such as the lysosome11-13. The dye is taken up by diffusion and through the circulation. Since penetration is not a hindrance, visualization of PCD in thick tissues and multi-layer cultures is possible12,13. In contrast, TUNEL (Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling) analysis14, is limited to small samples, histological sections, and monolayer cultures because the procedure requires the entry/permeability of a terminal transferase.
In contrast to Aniline blue, which diffuses and is dissolved by solvents, LysoTracker Red DND-99 is fixable, bright, and stable. Staining can be visualized with standard fluorescent or confocal microscopy in whole-mount or section using aqueous or solvent-based mounting media12,13. Here we describe protocols using this dye to look at PCD in normal and sonichedgehog null mouse embryos. In addition, we demonstrate analysis of PCD in differentiating ES cell cultures and present a simple quantification method. In summary, LysoTracker staining can be a great complement to other methods of detecting PCD.

Institutions: The University of Connecticut Health Center, The University of Connecticut Health Center, The University of Connecticut Health Center.

Here, a stepwise procedure for efficiently generating telencephalic glutamatergic neurons from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) has been described. The differentiation process is initiated by breaking the human PSCs into clumps which round up to form aggregates when the cells are placed in a suspension culture. The aggregates are then grown in hESC medium from days 1-4 to allow for spontaneous differentiation. During this time, the cells have the capacity to become any of the three germ layers. From days 5-8, the cells are placed in a neural induction medium to push them into the neural lineage. Around day 8, the cells are allowed to attach onto 6 well plates and differentiate during which time the neuroepithelial cells form. These neuroepithelial cells can be isolated at day 17. The cells can then be kept as neurospheres until they are ready to be plated onto coverslips. Using a basic medium without any caudalizing factors, neuroepithelial cells are specified into telencephalic precursors, which can then be further differentiated into dorsal telencephalic progenitors and glutamatergic neurons efficiently. Overall, our system provides a tool to generate human glutamatergic neurons for researchers to study the development of these neurons and the diseases which affect them.

Embryonic stem cells (ESC) have two main characteristics: they can be indefinitely propagated in vitro in an undifferentiated state and they are pluripotent, thus having the potential to differentiate into multiple lineages. Such properties make ESCs extremely attractive for cell based therapy and regenerative treatment applications 1. However for its full potential to be realized the cells have to be differentiated into mature and functional phenotypes, which is a daunting task. A promising approach in inducing cellular differentiation is to closely mimic the path of organogenesis in the in vitro setting. Pancreatic development is known to occur in specific stages 2, starting with endoderm, which can develop into several organs, including liver and pancreas. Endoderm induction can be achieved by modulation of the nodal pathway through addition of Activin A 3 in combination with several growth factors 4-7. Definitive endoderm cells then undergo pancreatic commitment by inhibition of sonic hedgehog inhibition, which can be achieved in vitro by addition of cyclopamine 8. Pancreatic maturation is mediated by several parallel events including inhibition of notch signaling; aggregation of pancreatic progenitors into 3-dimentional clusters; induction of vascularization; to name a few. By far the most successful in vitro maturation of ESC derived pancreatic progenitor cells have been achieved through inhibition of notch signaling by DAPT supplementation 9. Although successful, this results in low yield of the mature phenotype with reduced functionality. A less studied area is the effect of endothelial cell signaling in pancreatic maturation, which is increasingly being appreciated as an important contributing factor in in-vivo pancreatic islet maturation 10,11.
The current study explores such effect of endothelial cell signaling in maturation of human ESC derived pancreatic progenitor cells into insulin producing islet-like cells. We report a multi-stage directed differentiation protocol where the human ESCs are first induced towards endoderm by Activin A along with inhibition of PI3K pathway. Pancreatic specification of endoderm cells is achieved by inhibition of sonic hedgehog signaling by Cyclopamine along with retinoid induction by addition of Retinoic Acid. The final stage of maturation is induced by endothelial cell signaling achieved by a co-culture configuration. While several endothelial cells have been tested in the co-culture, herein we present our data with rat heart microvascular endothelial Cells (RHMVEC), primarily for the ease of analysis.

Direct differentiation of embryonic stem (ES) cells into functional motor neurons represents a promising resource to study disease mechanisms, to screen new drug compounds, and to develop new therapies for motor neuron diseases such as spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Many current protocols use a combination of retinoic acid (RA) and sonic hedgehog (Shh) to differentiate mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells into motor neurons1-4. However, the differentiation efficiency of mES cells into motor neurons has only met with moderate success. We have developed a two-step differentiation protocol5 that significantly improves the differentiation efficiency compared with currently established protocols. The first step is to enhance the neuralization process by adding Noggin and fibroblast growth factors (FGFs). Noggin is a bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) antagonist and is implicated in neural induction according to the default model of neurogenesis and results in the formation of anterior neural patterning6. FGF signaling acts synergistically with Noggin in inducing neural tissue formation by promoting a posterior neural identity7-9. In this step, mES cells were primed with Noggin, bFGF, and FGF-8 for two days to promote differentiation towards neural lineages. The second step is to induce motor neuron specification. Noggin/FGFs exposed mES cells were incubated with RA and a Shh agonist, Smoothened agonist (SAG), for another 5 days to facilitate motor neuron generation. To monitor the differentiation of mESs into motor neurons, we used an ES cell line derived from a transgenic mouse expressing eGFP under the control of the motor neuron specific promoter Hb91. Using this robust protocol, we achieved 51±0.8% of differentiation efficiency (n = 3; p < 0.01, Student's t-test)5. Results from immunofluorescent staining showed that GFP+ cells express the motor neuron specific markers, Islet-1 and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT). Our two-step differentiation protocol provides an efficient way to differentiate mES cells into spinal motor neurons.

Dendritic cells (DCs) can be considered sentinels of the immune system which play a critical role in its initiation and response to infection1. Detection of pathogenic antigen by naïve DCs is through pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) which are able to recognize specific conserved structures referred to as pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPS). Detection of PAMPs by DCs triggers an intracellular signaling cascade resulting in their activation and transformation to mature DCs. This process is typically characterized by production of type 1 interferon along with other proinflammatory cytokines, upregulation of cell surface markers such as MHCII and CD86 and migration of the mature DC to draining lymph nodes, where interaction with T cells initiates the adaptive immune response2,3. Thus, DCs link the innate and adaptive immune systems.
The ability to dissect the molecular networks underlying DC response to various pathogens is crucial to a better understanding of the regulation of these signaling pathways and their induced genes. It should also help facilitate the development of DC-based vaccines against infectious diseases and tumors. However, this line of research has been severely impeded by the difficulty of transfecting primary DCs4.
Virus transduction methods, such as the lentiviral system, are typically used, but carry many limitations such as complexity and bio-hazardous risk (with the associated costs)5,6,7,8. Additionally, the delivery of viral gene products increases the immunogenicity of those transduced DCs9,10,11,12. Electroporation has been used with mixed results13,14,15, but we are the first to report the use of a high-throughput transfection protocol and conclusively demonstrate its utility.
In this report we summarize an optimized commercial protocol for high-throughput transfection of human primary DCs, with limited cell toxicity and an absence of DC maturation16. Transfection efficiency (of GFP plasmid) and cell viability were more than 50% and 70% respectively. FACS analysis established the absence of increase in expression of the maturation markers CD86 and MHCII in transfected cells, while qRT-PCR demonstrated no upregulation of IFNβ. Using this electroporation protocol, we provide evidence for successful transfection of DCs with siRNA and effective knock down of targeted gene RIG-I, a key viral recognition receptor16,17, at both the mRNA and protein levels.

MSCs are a population of adult stem cells that is a promising source for therapeutic applications. These cells can be isolated from the bone marrow and can be easily separated from the hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) due to their plastic adherence. This protocol describes how to isolate MSCs from rat femurs and tibias. The isolated cells were further enriched against two MSCs surface markers CD54 and CD90 by magnetic cell sorting. Expression of surface markers CD54 and CD90 were then confirmed by flow cytometry analysis. HSC marker CD45 was also included to check if the sorted MSCs were depleted of HSCs. MSCs are naturally quite heterogeneous. There are subpopulations of cells that have different shapes, proliferation and differentiation abilities. These subpopulations all express the known MSCs markers and no unique marker has yet been identified for the different subpopulations. Therefore, an alternative approach to separate out the different subpopulations is using cloning cylinders to separate out single-colony derived cells. The cells derived from the single-colonies can then be cultured and evaluated separately.

Institutions: The University of Texas Medical Branch, The University of Texas Medical Branch, The University of Texas Medical Branch.

An attenuated West Nile virus (WNV), a nonstructural (NS) 4B-P38G mutant, induced higher innate cytokine and T cell responses than the wild-type WNV in mice. Recently, myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) signaling was shown to be important for initial T cell priming and memory T cell development during WNV NS4B-P38G mutant infection. In this study, two flow cytometry-based methods – an in vitro T cell priming assay and an intracellular cytokine staining (ICS) – were utilized to assess dendritic cells (DCs) and T cell functions. In the T cell priming assay, cell proliferation was analyzed by flow cytometry following co-culture of DCs from both groups of mice with carboxyfluorescein succinimidyl ester (CFSE) - labeled CD4+ T cells of OTII transgenic mice. This approach provided an accurate determination of the percentage of proliferating CD4+ T cells with significantly improved overall sensitivity than the traditional assays with radioactive reagents. A microcentrifuge tube system was used in both cell culture and cytokine staining procedures of the ICS protocol. Compared to the traditional tissue culture plate-based system, this modified procedure was easier to perform at biosafety level (BL) 3 facilities. Moreover, WNV- infected cells were treated with paraformaldehyde in both assays, which enabled further analysis outside BL3 facilities. Overall, these in vitro immunological assays can be used to efficiently assess cell-mediated immune responses during WNV infection.

Adoptive cell transfer (ACT) of antigen-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) is a promising treatment for a variety of malignancies 1. CTLs can recognize malignant cells by interacting tumor antigens with the T cell receptors (TCR), and release cytotoxins as well as cytokines to kill malignant cells. It is known that less-differentiated and central-memory-like (termed highly reactive) CTLs are the optimal population for ACT-based immunotherapy, because these CTLs have a high proliferative potential, are less prone to apoptosis than more differentiated cells and have a higher ability to respond to homeostatic cytokines 2-7. However, due to difficulties in obtaining a high number of such CTLs from patients, there is an urgent need to find a new approach to generate highly reactive Ag-specific CTLs for successful ACT-based therapies.
TCR transduction of the self-renewable stem cells for immune reconstitution has a therapeutic potential for the treatment of diseases 8-10. However, the approach to obtain embryonic stem cells (ESCs) from patients is not feasible. Although the use of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) for therapeutic purposes has been widely applied in clinic 11-13, HSCs have reduced differentiation and proliferative capacities, and HSCs are difficult to expand in in vitro cell culture 14-16. Recent iPS cell technology and the development of an in vitro system for gene delivery are capable of generating iPS cells from patients without any surgical approach. In addition, like ESCs, iPS cells possess indefinite proliferative capacity in vitro, and have been shown to differentiate into hematopoietic cells. Thus, iPS cells have greater potential to be used in ACT-based immunotherapy compared to ESCs or HSCs.
Here, we present methods for the generation of T lymphocytes from iPS cells in vitro, and in vivo programming of antigen-specific CTLs from iPS cells for promoting cancer immune surveillance. Stimulation in vitro with a Notch ligand drives T cell differentiation from iPS cells, and TCR gene transduction results in iPS cells differentiating into antigen-specific T cells in vivo, which prevents tumor growth. Thus, we demonstrate antigen-specific T cell differentiation from iPS cells. Our studies provide a potentially more efficient approach for generating antigen-specific CTLs for ACT-based therapies and facilitate the development of therapeutic strategies for diseases.

Institutions: University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Current astrocytoma models are limited in their ability to define the roles of oncogenic mutations in specific brain cell types during disease pathogenesis and their utility for preclinical drug development. In order to design a better model system for these applications, phenotypically wild-type cortical astrocytes and neural stem cells (NSC) from conditional, genetically engineered mice (GEM) that harbor various combinations of floxed oncogenic alleles were harvested and grown in culture. Genetic recombination was induced in vitro using adenoviral Cre-mediated recombination, resulting in expression of mutated oncogenes and deletion of tumor suppressor genes. The phenotypic consequences of these mutations were defined by measuring proliferation, transformation, and drug response in vitro. Orthotopic allograft models, whereby transformed cells are stereotactically injected into the brains of immune-competent, syngeneic littermates, were developed to define the role of oncogenic mutations and cell type on tumorigenesis in vivo. Unlike most established human glioblastoma cell line xenografts, injection of transformed GEM-derived cortical astrocytes into the brains of immune-competent littermates produced astrocytomas, including the most aggressive subtype, glioblastoma, that recapitulated the histopathological hallmarks of human astrocytomas, including diffuse invasion of normal brain parenchyma. Bioluminescence imaging of orthotopic allografts from transformed astrocytes engineered to express luciferase was utilized to monitor in vivo tumor growth over time. Thus, astrocytoma models using astrocytes and NSC harvested from GEM with conditional oncogenic alleles provide an integrated system to study the genetics and cell biology of astrocytoma pathogenesis in vitro and in vivo and may be useful in preclinical drug development for these devastating diseases.

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have great potential for studying human embryonic development, for modeling human diseases in the dish and as a source of transplantable cells for regenerative applications after disease or accidents. Neural crest (NC) cells are the precursors for a large variety of adult somatic cells, such as cells from the peripheral nervous system and glia, melanocytes and mesenchymal cells. They are a valuable source of cells to study aspects of human embryonic development, including cell fate specification and migration. Further differentiation of NC progenitor cells into terminally differentiated cell types offers the possibility to model human diseases in vitro, investigate disease mechanisms and generate cells for regenerative medicine. This article presents the adaptation of a currently available in vitro differentiation protocol for the derivation of NC cells from hPSCs. This new protocol requires 18 days of differentiation, is feeder-free, easily scalable and highly reproducible among human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines as well as human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) lines. Both old and new protocols yield NC cells of equal identity.

Brain tumors have been suggested to possess a small population of stem cells that are the root cause of tumorigenesis. Neurosphere assays have been generally adopted to study the nature of neural stem cells, including those derived from normal and tumorous tissues. However, appreciable amounts of differentiation and cell death are common in cultured neurospheres likely due to sub-optimal condition such as accessibility of all cells within sphere aggregates to culture medium.
Medulloblastoma, the most common pediatric CNS tumor, is characterized by its rapid progression and tendency to spread along the entire brain-spinal axis with dismal clinical outcome. Medulloblastoma is a neuroepithelial tumor of the cerebellum, accounting for 20% and 40% of intracranial and posterior fossa tumor in childhood, respectively1. It is now well established that Shh signaling stimulates proliferation of cerebellar granule neuron precursors (CGNPs) during cerebellar development 2-4. Numerous studies using mouse models, in which the Shh pathway is constitutively activated, have linked Shh signaling with medulloblastoma 5-9.
A recent report has shown that a subset of medulloblastoma cells derived from Patched1LacZ/+ mice are cancer stem cells, which are capable of initiating and propogating tumors 10. Here we describe an efficient method to isolate, enrich and maintain tumor stem cells derived from several mouse models of medulloblastoma, with constitutively activated Shh pathway due to a mutation in Smoothened (11, hereon referred as SmoM2), a GPCR that is critical for Shh pathway activation. In every isolated medulloblastoma tissue, we were able to establish numerous highly proliferative colonies. These cells robustly expressed several neural stem cell markers such as Nestin and Sox2, can undergo serial passages (greater than 20) and were clonogenic. While these cultured tumor stem cells were relatively small, often bipoar with high nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio when cultured under conditions favoring stem cell growth, they dramatically altered their morphology, extended multiple cellular processes, flattened and withdrew from the cell cycle upon switching to a cell culture medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum. More importantly, these tumor stem cells differentiated into Tuj1+ or NeuN+ neurons, GFAP+ astrocytes and CNPase+ oligodendrocytes, thus highlighting their multi-potency. Furthermore, these cells were capable of propagating secondary medulloblastomas when orthotopically transplanted into host mice.

Institutions: University of California, Davis, University of California, Davis, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.

A preclinical model of invasive bladder cancer was developed in human mucin 1 (MUC1) transgenic (MUC1.Tg) mice for the purpose of evaluating immunotherapy and/or cytotoxic chemotherapy. To induce bladder cancer, C57BL/6 mice (MUC1.Tg and wild type) were treated orally with the carcinogen N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (OH-BBN) at 3.0 mg/day, 5 days/week for 12 weeks. To assess the effects of OH-BBN on serum cytokine profile during tumor development, whole blood was collected via submandibular bleeds prior to treatment and every four weeks. In addition, a MUC1-targeted peptide vaccine and placebo were administered to groups of mice weekly for eight weeks. Multiplex fluorometric microbead immunoanalyses of serum cytokines during tumor development and following vaccination were performed. At termination, interferon gamma (IFN-γ)/interleukin-4 (IL-4) ELISpot analysis for MUC1 specific T-cell immune response and histopathological evaluations of tumor type and grade were performed. The results showed that: (1) the incidence of bladder cancer in both MUC1.Tg and wild type mice was 67%; (2) transitional cell carcinomas (TCC) developed at a 2:1 ratio compared to squamous cell carcinomas (SCC); (3) inflammatory cytokines increased with time during tumor development; and (4) administration of the peptide vaccine induces a Th1-polarized serum cytokine profile and a MUC1 specific T-cell response. All tumors in MUC1.Tg mice were positive for MUC1 expression, and half of all tumors in MUC1.Tg and wild type mice were invasive. In conclusion, using a team approach through the coordination of the efforts of pharmacologists, immunologists, pathologists and molecular biologists, we have developed an immune intact transgenic mouse model of bladder cancer that expresses hMUC1.

Assessing the Development of Murine Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells in Peyer's Patches Using Adoptive Transfer of Hematopoietic Progenitors

Authors: Haiyan S. Li, Stephanie S. Watowich.

Institutions: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

This protocol details a method to analyze the ability of purified hematopoietic progenitors to generate plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC) in intestinal Peyer's patch (PP). Common dendritic cell progenitors (CDPs, lin- c-kitlo CD115+ Flt3+) were purified from the bone marrow of C57BL6 mice by FACS and transferred to recipient mice that lack a significant pDC population in PP; in this case, Ifnar-/- mice were used as the transfer recipients. In some mice, overexpression of the dendritic cell growth factor Flt3 ligand (Flt3L) was enforced prior to adoptive transfer of CDPs, using hydrodynamic gene transfer (HGT) of Flt3L-encoding plasmid. Flt3L overexpression expands DC populations originating from transferred (or endogenous) hematopoietic progenitors. At 7-10 days after progenitor transfer, pDCs that arise from the adoptively transferred progenitors were distinguished from recipient cells on the basis of CD45 marker expression, with pDCs from transferred CDPs being CD45.1+ and recipients being CD45.2+. The ability of transferred CDPs to contribute to the pDC population in PP and to respond to Flt3L was evaluated by flow cytometry of PP single cell suspensions from recipient mice. This method may be used to test whether other progenitor populations are capable of generating PP pDCs. In addition, this approach could be used to examine the role of factors that are predicted to affect pDC development in PP, by transferring progenitor subsets with an appropriate knockdown, knockout or overexpression of the putative developmental factor and/or by manipulating circulating cytokines via HGT. This method may also allow analysis of how PP pDCs affect the frequency or function of other immune subsets in PPs. A unique feature of this method is the use of Ifnar-/- mice, which show severely depleted PP pDCs relative to wild type animals, thus allowing reconstitution of PP pDCs in the absence of confounding effects from lethal irradiation.

Institutions: The University of Chicago Medical Center, The University of Chicago Medical Center.

Migraine and its transformation to chronic migraine are healthcare burdens in need of improved treatment options. We seek to define how neural immune signaling modulates the susceptibility to migraine, modeled in vitro using spreading depression (SD), as a means to develop novel therapeutic targets for episodic and chronic migraine. SD is the likely cause of migraine aura and migraine pain. It is a paroxysmal loss of neuronal function triggered by initially increased neuronal activity, which slowly propagates within susceptible brain regions. Normal brain function is exquisitely sensitive to, and relies on, coincident low-level immune signaling. Thus, neural immune signaling likely affects electrical activity of SD, and therefore migraine. Pain perception studies of SD in whole animals are fraught with difficulties, but whole animals are well suited to examine systems biology aspects of migraine since SD activates trigeminal nociceptive pathways. However, whole animal studies alone cannot be used to decipher the cellular and neural circuit mechanisms of SD. Instead, in vitro preparations where environmental conditions can be controlled are necessary. Here, it is important to recognize limitations of acute slices and distinct advantages of hippocampal slice cultures. Acute brain slices cannot reveal subtle changes in immune signaling since preparing the slices alone triggers: pro-inflammatory changes that last days, epileptiform behavior due to high levels of oxygen tension needed to vitalize the slices, and irreversible cell injury at anoxic slice centers.
In contrast, we examine immune signaling in mature hippocampal slice cultures since the cultures closely parallel their in vivo counterpart with mature trisynaptic function; show quiescent astrocytes, microglia, and cytokine levels; and SD is easily induced in an unanesthetized preparation. Furthermore, the slices are long-lived and SD can be induced on consecutive days without injury, making this preparation the sole means to-date capable of modeling the neuroimmune consequences of chronic SD, and thus perhaps chronic migraine. We use electrophysiological techniques and non-invasive imaging to measure neuronal cell and circuit functions coincident with SD. Neural immune gene expression variables are measured with qPCR screening, qPCR arrays, and, importantly, use of cDNA preamplification for detection of ultra-low level targets such as interferon-gamma using whole, regional, or specific cell enhanced (via laser dissection microscopy) sampling. Cytokine cascade signaling is further assessed with multiplexed phosphoprotein related targets with gene expression and phosphoprotein changes confirmed via cell-specific immunostaining. Pharmacological and siRNA strategies are used to mimic and modulate SD immune signaling.

Institutions: Université de Montréal, Université de Montréal, Université de Montréal.

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality following umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT). For this reason, antiherpetic prophylaxis is administrated systematically to pediatric UCBT recipients to prevent complications associated with VZV infection, but there is no strong, evidence based consensus that defines its optimal duration. Because T cell mediated immunity is responsible for the control of VZV infection, assessing the reconstitution of VZV specific T cell responses following UCBT could provide indications as to whether prophylaxis should be maintained or can be discontinued. To this end, a VZV specific gamma interferon (IFN-γ) enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISpot) assay was developed to characterize IFN-γ production by T lymphocytes in response to in vitro stimulation with irradiated live attenuated VZV vaccine. This assay provides a rapid, reproducible and sensitive measurement of VZV specific cell mediated immunity suitable for monitoring the reconstitution of VZV specific immunity in a clinical setting and assessing immune responsiveness to VZV antigens.

The blood brain barrier (BBB) specifically regulates molecular and cellular flux between the blood and the nervous tissue. Our aim was to develop and characterize a highly reproducible rat syngeneic in vitro model of the BBB using co-cultures of primary rat brain endothelial cells (RBEC) and astrocytes to study receptors involved in transcytosis across the endothelial cell monolayer. Astrocytes were isolated by mechanical dissection following trypsin digestion and were frozen for later co-culture. RBEC were isolated from 5-week-old rat cortices. The brains were cleaned of meninges and white matter, and mechanically dissociated following enzymatic digestion. Thereafter, the tissue homogenate was centrifuged in bovine serum albumin to separate vessel fragments from nervous tissue. The vessel fragments underwent a second enzymatic digestion to free endothelial cells from their extracellular matrix. The remaining contaminating cells such as pericytes were further eliminated by plating the microvessel fragments in puromycin-containing medium. They were then passaged onto filters for co-culture with astrocytes grown on the bottom of the wells. RBEC expressed high levels of tight junction (TJ) proteins such as occludin, claudin-5 and ZO-1 with a typical localization at the cell borders. The transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER) of brain endothelial monolayers, indicating the tightness of TJs reached 300 ohm·cm2 on average. The endothelial permeability coefficients (Pe) for lucifer yellow (LY) was highly reproducible with an average of 0.26 ± 0.11 x 10-3 cm/min. Brain endothelial cells organized in monolayers expressed the efflux transporter P-glycoprotein (P-gp), showed a polarized transport of rhodamine 123, a ligand for P-gp, and showed specific transport of transferrin-Cy3 and DiILDL across the endothelial cell monolayer. In conclusion, we provide a protocol for setting up an in vitro BBB model that is highly reproducible due to the quality assurance methods, and that is suitable for research on BBB transporters and receptors.

Microdissection is a novel technique that can isolate specific regions of a tissue and eliminate contamination from cellular sources in adjacent areas. This method was first utilized in the study of Nestin-expressing progenitors (NEPs), a newly identified population of cells in the cerebellar external germinal layer (EGL). Using microdissection in combination with fluorescent-activated cell sorting (FACS), a pure population of NEPs was collected separately from conventional granule neuron precursors in the EGL and from other contaminating Nestin-expressing cells in the cerebellum. Without microdissection, functional analyses of NEPs would not have been possible with the current methods available, such as Percoll gradient centrifugation and laser capture microdissection. This technique can also be applied for use with various tissues that contain either recognizable regions or fluorescently-labeled cells. Most importantly, a major advantage of this microdissection technique is that isolated cells are living and can be cultured for further experimentation, which is currently not possible with other described methods.

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